


The Haunting of Tsukishima Kei

by Eloquent_Vowel



Series: Fictober2020 [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Angst, Death, Fictober 2020, M/M, fictober20
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:01:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26771077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eloquent_Vowel/pseuds/Eloquent_Vowel
Relationships: Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Series: Fictober2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947466
Kudos: 16
Collections: Fictober20





	The Haunting of Tsukishima Kei

It was not raining, much to his disappointment. It would have fit his mood perfectly, if it had been raining. In fact the whole environment seemed to work against him as he shuffled through the lush green of spring. The soft white blooms of daisies that framed the path in front of him wiggled their heads tauntingly in the breeze.

The walk to their spot had been much easier in their youth. Now Tsukishima had to lean heavily on his cane and take frequent breaks when walking up this path. It annoyed him, but he didn’t mind completely as every break he took gave him a chance to reflect on everything around him.

Halfway up he halted, breathing heavily, and observed the scenery that surrounded him. Even from here the view over their hometown was beautiful. The sun was just rising, the night sky interrupted by hints of a light yellow bursting from the horizon. The early morning calls of small birds broke the silence, Tsukishima tightened his grip on the paper bag in his hand, steadied himself and set off up the path once more. It was steeper than he remembered last. The rocks that shifted under his feet caused him to stumble, where previously he had laughed it off, he had to take a moment to right himself once more. The walk was arduous and by the time the peak of the hill was visible Tsukishima was leaning almost entirely on his cane and breathing rapidly.

But the trek had been worth it. The view from this spot had always been their favourite. The solitary tree that stood on the hillside provided the perfect back support, it had sheltered them many a time when they had run up this path in torrential rain when their laughter still could not be drowned out by the rain hitting the earth. Tsukishima ran his hand over the gnarled bark of their tree, wrinkled fingers tracing the weathered, old carving.

_‘Tsukishima Kei X Yamaguchi Tadashi_   
_2015 - always.’_

He smiled bitterly as he remembered the proud look Yamaguchi had had on his face when he had carved those words into their tree. They were cheesy, Tsukishima had not hesitated to let him know, but Yamaguchi had that damn smile on his face. The one where his eyes crinkled into halfmoons as his freckled cheeks rose to light up his entire face, Tsukishima had never been able to remain angry at that smile.

His knees creaked as he sat beneath the tree, his back fitting comfortably against the trunk. Tsukishima watched as the sun rose gently against the sky, opening the paper bag beside him and pulling out the bottle of sake and placing it by his side. He reached deeper into the bag and took out a single red Camellia. The small red flower had been squashed slightly but its petals were vibrant none the less. He knew that what he was doing wasn’t really common tradition but he had made this little ritual his own for two years now and every time he did it he felt slightly less lonely than he did before.

Tsukishima rolled the thing green stem of the flower in his hands as he spoke.

‘I can’t believe it’s been two years already. It seems so long, but still so short. It seems like yesterday I was holding your hand in bed. Twisting that damn ring around and round your finger. You were so determined to keep it on, even though it kept slipping off your knuckle.’ Tsukishima laughed bitterly as he opened the bottle of sake. ‘I should be thankful that we got so long together, we got our whole lives together. Decades of life that we shared with each other greatly outweigh the amount I have spent alone but these have been the two longest years of my life.’ He placed the stem of the flower into the sake, using the bottle as a make shift vase, he placed the bottle on the ground next to him and stared back out onto the horizon.

‘I’m still not used to waking up to an empty bed, I still haven’t changed the amount of rice I make, the closet is still half empty, your vases are still empty on the windowsill. Every step I take I want you to be there beside me and every now and again I think I see you. I have come to realise that sometimes you can even see ghosts when you want to believe something is haunting you.’

Tsukishima could not face the sunset anymore, his neck grew too heavy. Exhaustion gripped his body, his bones no longer used to the exercise. As he leant back to fall asleep to the sunrise he felt the familiar warmth over his shoulders that he only felt under this tree and drifted into sleep.

_It hurt to see him so miserable, it was the most I could do to stay with him in this one spot, I hope that I am able to bring him some comfort._


End file.
